Tom Misch – Soulection White Label: 008

Tom Misch‘s SoundCloud is overflowing with exquisite collaborations and jazz-infused hip-hop productions that are nothing short of magnificent. Instead of hunching over a record player in search of that perfect vinyl to scratch or sample to flip like most producers, Misch has imagined just about every swanky guitar lick and bright violin melody himself. In Soulection White Label: 008, the London-based producer has taken a more direct approach to songwriting, sharpening his sound and refining his technique to conceive three remarkably polished productions for the esteemed hip-hop collective.

In the EP’s opener, “Journey,” production quality is at its finest. To bolster it’s remarkably straight-forward bassline, there is a hefty amount of production tacked onto the swelling violin and hopping beat. Nevertheless, Misch finds time to let his inspirations run wild in the final few moments of this song where he lays down a sleek and highly interpretive guitar solo. Though it doesn’t exactly make for a flawless transition into the second track “Risk,” it certainly showcases the producer’s knack for experimentation, if not his proficiency along the fretboard.

As pieces of “Journey” begin to faded out of site, Misch gradually makes his way into the EP’s celestial second cut, “Risk.” A sputtering hi-hat opens things up before reaching a steady level, at which point samples begin to branch off into various directions. Following a cool and breezy bridge full of “oohs” and “ahhs,” the tempo is kicked up once again as the hi-hats begin to niggle their way up the beat and the samples begin to converge.

After a woozy piano line lurches forward in the opening seconds of “South East,” the final song in this three-track collection, a confident bassline hops along for the ride, bouncing throughout as Misch builds upon layers of piano. Like the opening track, “South East” finds the multi-instrumentalist laying down the groundwork before breaking free of the rhythm. For two or so bars, he scales his way down the guitar with a riff not too far out of reach of George Benson.